"When my mother first told me about Jack she just said 'this is a man who is going to take you out once a week, be a sort of adult friend.' I guess she realized I'd need some guidance. None of us could have imagined how this would turn out."

While the relationship began as a formal Big Brother arrangement, it quickly evolved.

"We were always good friends," says McAdam. "It turned into more of a father-son thing. Father's Day, I would always get him a card. He made such an impact on my life. He taught me that if you want something in your life you work for it. You always make time for other people. These are his values."

They'd go work out at the downtown YMHA, go bowling at Empress Lanes and golf together. Aron taught him life lessons and he also taught him good sportsmanship.

"You just look back and say, 'boy, was I fortunate.'"

Aron put the boy to work in his tailor shop. He still has the first dollar Aron paid him.

McAdam hasn't got children of his own and he's not sure he's ready to become a Big Brother.

"I'd have such big shoes to fill," he says slowly. "Maybe I can't make as big a difference in a kid's life. Could I do as good a job as Jack?"

While Aron's illness sometimes muddies his memories, he emphatically knows who McAdam is. On his birthday, the Big Brother phoned his Little Brother and sang to him.

"Something like that... " McAdam chokes up. "He just means so much to me."

And so, many nights after he finishes his shift at The Bay, Rob McAdam drives over to Taché Centre, takes the elevator to the fourth floor and visits Jack Aron. It doesn't matter, really, whether he's awake or not.

"He always watched out for me," says McAdam. "He taught me how to be man and how to care for someone."

When he's ready, when the time is right, McAdam will be a fine Big Brother.